Spencer Holtz, UW Ph.D. Candidate

2024 Recipient of Biodiversity Institute Graduate Student Excellence Grant

Department of Botany

Advisor: Christopher Weiss-Lehman

My research will combine a controlled laboratory experiment with genomic analyses to address how climate induced range shifts affect a population’s ability to adapt to novel conditions. By experimentally shifting the range of red flour beetles, Tribolium castaneum, in laboratory microcosms and then exposing those beetles to novel conditions, we can approximate the effects of a species shifting its range due to climate change and subsequently encountering novel stressful conditions. Understanding how species adapt to novel conditions after a range shift will improve our understanding of how biodiversity will be maintained in this era of global change. The grant from The Biodiversity Institute will allow me to sequence the genomes of the populations from my current range shift experiment allowing me to link genomic data to a population's adaptive potential. This research will improve our ability to use genetic information to identify species of conservation concern and whether they might benefit from assisted migration to mitigate the impacts of climate change.